diff --git a/django/utils/tree.py b/django/utils/tree.py
index d13883a00e..a56442c32d 100644
--- a/django/utils/tree.py
+++ b/django/utils/tree.py
@@ -88,31 +88,28 @@ class Node:
         Return a node which can be used in place of data regardless if the
         node other got squashed or not.
         """
-        if self.connector == conn_type and data in self.children:
-            return data
-        if self.connector == conn_type:
-            # We can reuse self.children to append or squash the node other.
-            if (isinstance(data, Node) and not data.negated and
-                    (data.connector == conn_type or len(data) == 1)):
-                # We can squash the other node's children directly into this
-                # node. We are just doing (AB)(CD) == (ABCD) here, with the
-                # addition that if the length of the other node is 1 the
-                # connector doesn't matter. However, for the len(self) == 1
-                # case we don't want to do the squashing, as it would alter
-                # self.connector.
-                self.children.extend(data.children)
-                return self
-            else:
-                # We could use perhaps additional logic here to see if some
-                # children could be used for pushdown here.
-                self.children.append(data)
-                return data
-        else:
-            obj = self._new_instance(self.children, self.connector,
-                                     self.negated)
+        if self.connector != conn_type:
+            obj = self._new_instance(self.children, self.connector, self.negated)
             self.connector = conn_type
             self.children = [obj, data]
             return data
+        elif (
+            isinstance(data, Node) and
+            not data.negated and
+            (data.connector == conn_type or len(data) == 1)
+        ):
+            # We can squash the other node's children directly into this node.
+            # We are just doing (AB)(CD) == (ABCD) here, with the addition that
+            # if the length of the other node is 1 the connector doesn't
+            # matter. However, for the len(self) == 1 case we don't want to do
+            # the squashing, as it would alter self.connector.
+            self.children.extend(data.children)
+            return self
+        else:
+            # We could use perhaps additional logic here to see if some
+            # children could be used for pushdown here.
+            self.children.append(data)
+            return data
 
     def negate(self):
         """Negate the sense of the root connector."""